This past trip to LA was the most I’ve spent in the area in one visit, and fortunately it was filled with some good eats. On my second night there, I visited Bottega Louie in downtown with my friends Sarah and Yasir on the suggestion of our local friends Danish and Sarah (did you keep that all straight? And PS, Yasir is just a simple guy whose belongings Jared Leto likes to blog about…nbd). If the pastry display itself doesn’t reel you in, their macarons will. I’m not generally one for macarons, but if you do dive in, make sure you get one of the espresso ones! The flavors are intense and a little more dense than other ones I’ve tried.
Clearly, we started our meal backwards (you try waiting right in front of all that sugar-ey temptations without ordering at least ONE). When the rest of our party came, we were seated in the massive dining area pretty fast. The room has space for about 800, to give you an idea…you would think it’d be no problem getting a seat fast, but considering their ‘no reservations’ policy, it’s not uncommon to be waiting on a busy night.
In such a massive (and loud) place, it’s amazing how neither interfered with our meal. We were seated on a nice round family-style table that made us pay less attention to all of that, and more on the food and conversation. We went straight for the appetizers: portobello mushrooms (turned out to be Danish’s favorite), fried mozzarella (no surprises here), and brussel sprouts with pistachios (my favorite because I LOVE brussel sprouts, but my friend Sarah was less impressed…it was also her first time trying sprouts and I think she thought it was too sharp of a taste for her with the vinegar).
We then decided to keep it simple and ordered two pizzas: the Margherita (mozzarella, Grana parmesan, tomato sauce, basil & oregano) and the artichoke pizza (roasted artichokes, chèvre, mozzarella, tomato sauce, cherry tomatoes, Italian parsley, fleur de sel & extra virgin olive oil). Try the latter if you’re more adventurous.
The pizzas were decidedly satisfying — a little dry/bland when it came to the crusts though. The artichoke had a little bit of a garlic-ey kick, and I really don’t think you can go wrong with margherita. We just barely finished, and had some food to spare. Stuffed and happy.
REPORT CARD
Meal: 5th wheel dining
Price: $$
(Out of three stars)
Ambiance: ***
Food: ***
Service: *** (they take orders and deliver the food to the table with good timing)
Would I go back?: Yes
Restaurant Info:
Bottega Louie
700 South Grand Ave.
at 7th Street
Los Angeles, CA 91210
(213) 802-1470
Downtown
x
Shy
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